Obsessive bike hobby--cushy handlebar wrap

Oh, well, here goes our last reader. What is a hobby? It's an activity that one spends ridiculous amounts of time and money on, to achieve something that no one else will ever care about as much as you do. Still and all, there must be some payoff for it, because most people in the free world seem to have one.

I have a hobby, and I joined a loosely-arranged group of like minded hobbyists who fool around with classic (not necessarily old) bikes. I'm not totally alone in this pursuit, so I don't feel too embarassed about writing a public post on the subject.

I've gone through many thousands of dollars and hours getting the perfect (for me) bike. Having grown older in the process, I find that comfort and style are much more important than speed, and today's subject is getting comfortable (and you might think stylish) handlebars. Cotton bar tape as made in France and Japan is just about the nicest material to get a grip on, but without any padding underneath, it's hard and uncomfortable for me on long rides. Purists will stay with straight cotton wrap, but I've been doing something for many years that I like much better. First I found a brand of thin foam weatherstripping to wrap under the cotton, but it's been hard to find recently.

So in my annual maintenance/upgrade cycle, I tried putting conventional (fake) cork wrap under the cotton. I won't tell all the details, because they're tedious, but you first lay down the layer of cheap fake cork as usual, but don't finish it off with tape. Instead, carefully and slowly wrap your French cotton tape over the base layer. Make it tight, and don't be surprised if this is rather difficult: it's an irregular surface, with compound curves (I make it even worse by using specially curvy handlebars....Nitto Randonneurs that I got from Rivendell Bicycle Works, then flared out a little more by an unapproved process.). When the cotton tape is all in place, if you want a retro/classic look, finish the ends with hemp twine. It will look something like this, but in your own style, of course.

Bare cotton feels really nice, but it will wear out and get smudged if you don't protect it. The best stuff to use is Zinzer's Bullseye Shellac, 3 thinned (with denatured alcohol, or as the confused clerk called it "teenagers alcohol") coats for me, more for other people. This leaves the cloth feeling more "toothy" and tough, cleanable later with a soapy washrag if you ride with dirty hands. The shellac also holds the hemp twine together so it's less likely to break or unravel. This makes a fatter than usual grip surface, with a little shock-absorbency, which will last a long time, and even look nice if you use your own taste in "bike decorating".

Lots of people do similar jobs on their bikes (you know who you are--put your photo link in the comments!), and because this it completely hand-work, everybody's is different. This is not a bad hobby. It gets you outside, and look what I found out in the yard while I was puttering around!

P.S. All-black tape also looks very smart and classy, and of course feels the same.